Three Of You / Mari Blu & Marco Moschino :: Double review (Bordello A Parigi)

 In just a few years Bordello A Parigi has proven itself as one of the best Spaghetti Dance influenced imprints.

Bootlegs were a bit of a scourge a couple of years back. Perhaps  they still are, but I haven’t heard or seen much of them of late. Thankfully poor quality bootlegs have dried up, mainly due to the certain labels and their desire to bring the past back to life in all its glory. Bordello A Parigi has not only been responsible for some top notch represses, but also for creating a platform for new and established contemporary artists. It’s to 1986 and 2013 that the nice people at the Bordello now turn.

Three of You are an Italo Wave outfit who break the 1986 Italo rule, ’86 being the year that genre began to go, and then fell, downhill. The group were active from ’86-’88 and delivered a  different version of the Spaghetti Dance sound, one drawing on the influences of New Wave arriving from Britain and Germany. For the EP, T.O.Y., Bordello have combined released and unreleased material for six tracks of Wave goodness. “New Life” opens, and obliterates. Bleak yet elating. Vocals on the point and synths that blaze red; brilliant. The unreleased tracks are very interesting, ranging in style and mood from the speedway of “Isolation” to the melancholy of “Crazy.” The tracks echo of Kirlian Camera. “Grace” was the group’s first release and is more Italo. Those aching lyrics are again present but are balanced by a lightness of melody. “Amerika” is the abstraction ot the EP and the finale is a real surprise. Saturated snares introduce a bold work of Minimal Synth. Industrial strings are sliced by that ever incising beat. The track is reminiscent of Das Ding but spliced with Throbbing Gristle.

Marli Blu and Marco Moschino are a modern incarnation of the 80s Italian spirit. Amore Selvaggio embodies heart-break under the Rimini sun. The title piece balances warm synth lines with lyrics that ring with disappointment and lost love. Melodies come from the latter day sounds of Italy, clear and soaring in their composition. The flip is dedicated to “Baciami.” Those same lamenting vocals are central. Blu’s lyrics are breathy, tear-filled and wrenched. Once more Moschino’s vintage synthesizers curl and flow amongst those sorrow soaked stanzas. As on the A-Side, it’s the instrumental that is given closing space. Rich chords woven by one of the modern Dutch masters of electronics.

Bordello stands with two firm feet, one in the past and one in the present. Three of You is an inspired re-issue. The group are on blurry ground of Italian New Wave. Catchy hooks coupled with that neo-liberal angst and an uncertainty of a shifting time. Blu and Moschino are from a very different place. Pastiche wedded with late night emotion and shimmering melodies. In just a few years Bordello A Parigi has proven itself as one of the best Spaghetti Dance influenced imprints.

Both Amore Selvaggio and T.O.Y. are available on Bordello A Parigi.